


The Beast and the Tamer

by orphan_account



Series: Marvel Soulmate AUs [4]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Bruce Banner Needs a Hug, Bruce Banner is a great dad, F/M, Fluff, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, The Hulk deserves love too, Unplanned Pregnancy, mentioned abortion, parenting, shameless fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-17
Updated: 2016-10-17
Packaged: 2018-08-23 01:39:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8308801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: She lives in the apartment right next to his and her name is Mollie Winter. That’s all Bruce knows about her. Well, asides from the fact that she’s drop-dead gorgeous and he hasn’t ever talked to her.





	

She lives in the apartment right next to his and her name is Mollie Winter. That’s all Bruce knows about her. Well, asides from the fact that she’s drop-dead gorgeous and he hasn’t ever talked to her.

 

He likes to tell himself that he just hasn’t talked to her because she most definitely knows about the Other Guy and he’s afraid of seeing the fear in her eyes that most people get when they talk to him, but truth is, he has avoided talking to her so far because some silly, childish part of him hopes that she might be the woman he has forever longed to meet.

 

His words have been written across his stomach in a messy, loopy handwriting since he was eight, and although they don’t have a all that dreadful ring to them, Bruce has always been a tad bit scared of the exact situation he’ll hear them in.

 

This, actually, makes sense in his particular situation. Because for any other guy, the words “Are you okay? You seem… tense” might be no reason to worry, but for Bruce, being tense has lately been a huge reason to worry.

 

Still, some not-so-subconscious part of his brain hopes that Mollie Winter is the woman whose handwriting marks his stomach, and simultaneously, a definitely-not-subconscious part of him hopes and that she’ll deem him more tense than he’ll actually be.

 

Because, really, hulking out the second he meets his soulmate would even top Clint’s and Natasha’s story of meeting in the midst of his attempt to arrest her.

 

So Bruce hopes. But he doesn’t dare to actually make any advances towards the beautiful and charming Mollie Winter. Until fate decides to finally take the wheel.

 

* * *

 

 Mollie actually knows quite a few things about her next-door neighbor. She knows that his name is Dr. Bruce Banner and he’s part of the Avengers and exceptionally smart and he has a special green friend. Also, he looks a little bit like a lost puppy and Mollie kind of wants to hug him whenever she sees him in the hallway.

 

But she hasn’t ever talked to him, which she should probably do before skipping right to the hugging. That usually comes off as pretty weird.

 

Still, he’s cute. Mollie’s had countless debates with her best friend about whether to talk to him or not, but he doesn’t seem interested in her – like, at all – and there’s always the big minus of him becoming big and green whenever he gets too… agitated.

 

So Mollie doesn’t talk to him. But as it turns out, fate doesn’t really have a thing for logical consideration.

 

* * *

 

 She finds him in the alley next to their apartment building, crouched into a dark corner next to a dumpster. His whole body is trembling and even though she can’t be sure in the dark, there seems to be a hint of green in his eyes.

 

Mollie hesitates for a moment, but then she takes a deep breath and walks towards him. Something’s definitely wrong with him, and she’s a doctor, after all, and it’s her job to help people.

 

Bruce doesn’t seem to notice her at all, and she’s not really keen on what would happen if she startled him, so she audibly clears her throat before kneeling down next to him. He still winces though, and when his eyes find hers, there’s definitely some green in them.

 

Mollie pushes her fear inside and instead, starts talking in the soft, calming voice she usually uses on her patients. “Are you okay? You seem… tense.”

 

Every muscle in his body seems to tense abruptly at this, and Mollie’s half ready to run for her life in case he turns into the Hulk, but when he looks at her again, his eyes are of a deep, dark brown and his voice is strained but sincere.

 

“I got it under control.”

 

Her breath hitches in her throat and she looks at him with wide eyes before finally finding some words in her empty, overwhelmed brain. “Promise you won’t go green on me?”

 

He actually gives a half-smile at this, at it makes his whole face light up.

 

“I promise.”

 

* * *

 

 Half an hour later, they’re sitting in her living room side by side and Bruce seems to have completely calmed down, plopped up against her countless colorful cushions. He looks very puppy-like, and Mollie’s trying very hard to not just hug him.

 

Except, maybe she’s allowed to do that now. Because he’s said her words, and judging from his reaction, she said his too, so apparently, they’re soulmates. And soulmates hug, don’t they?

 

Mollie decides to just go for it.

 

He’s obviously startled, but he quickly overcomes his excitement and hugs her back. His strong arms wrap around her body and she can smell his aftershave on him and can’t help but think that their bodies fit together like puzzle pieces.

 

When she lets go, he looks confused, but not negatively so. “What was that for?”, he asks, a barely perceptible smile on his lips.

 

Mollie- shrugs and blushes. “I don’t know. You just looked like you needed a hug.”

 

His smile grows even bigger. “I think I did.”

 

She smiles back and then she scoots a little closer to him. “So, mind telling me what you were doing in that alley in the first place?”

 

Bruce tells her. He tells her about the three guys who tried to mug him before they recognized who he was and ran off in fear and about how he was seconds from hulking out before she came and said his words. When he’s done with his story, he grabs her hand and jokingly tells her that she’s tamed the beast.

 

Mollie’s tempted to tell him that there are other beasts she’d like to tame.

 

* * *

 

 Mollie gets pregnant six months into their relationship.

 

It’s unplanned, and she isn’t sure how it even happened. Maybe it has something to do with Bruce’s hulkiness, because she sure as hell hasn’t forgotten any of her pills. But the second she sees the little plus on the stick and puts a hand on her flat belly, she knows an abortion is not an option for her. It’s her and Bruce’s baby and she’ll keep it, no matter what happens.

 

She has her friend at the hospital check her over thrice before she tells Bruce, just to make sure that everything about the baby is okay and well, human, but he still freaks out. His eyes go green and he tells her that he can’t to this before he storms out of their apartment and doesn’t come back for three full days.

 

In those three days, she’s torn between wanting to kill him and crying her eyes out and checking the news for any hulk-caused destruction. She blames it on the pregnancy hormones, because she usually isn’t that moody, but when Bruce finally does come back, all those feelings are suddenly gone.

 

Mollie can’t do anything else but throw herself into his arms and relief floods her body when he catches her and holds her tight and whispers into her ear that he’s sorry.

 

“I love you.”, he says. “We can do this. Together. We’ll figure it out. This is a good thing. Right?”

 

She smiles. “Right.”

 

And it really is.

 

* * *

 

 Nicholas Banner is born on a cold Tuesday in January.

 

His mother holds him tight and sings songs to him in a soft voice and tells him that she loves him more than anything.

 

His father cradles him in his arms and touches his soft cheek as gently as if he might break under his touch and promises him that he’ll always keep him safe.

 

He only ever sees his father hulk out once, and that is when someone threatens to hurt Nicholas. Needless to say, no one ever threatens to hurt him again.

 

Nicholas grows up loved and safe, and his parents never doubt that he’s the best thing to ever happen to them.

 


End file.
